


The Rule of Odds

by Elnora_Hobart



Category: Free!
Genre: Artist AU, Free!Some - Freeform, Gesture Drawing, M/M, NUDE Gesture Drawing, OT3, Threesome, body painting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-10
Updated: 2015-04-11
Packaged: 2018-03-07 00:57:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3154802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elnora_Hobart/pseuds/Elnora_Hobart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's an art/artsy AU! Featuring Marinka/OT3/Free!some, as well as eventual Regisa/Nagirei.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Like a Thief in the Night, Or Not.

**Author's Note:**

> From Wiki: "The 'rule of odds' suggests that an odd number of subjects in an image is more interesting than an even number. Thus if you have more than one subject in your picture, the suggestion is to choose an arrangement with at least three subjects. An even number of subjects produces symmetries in the image, which can appear less natural for a naturalistic, informal composition."
> 
> ...Sounds like a good excuse for Free!some!
> 
> I'm only briefly skimming to edit, so hopefully there aren't gobs of errors. xP

“I’m here to pick up a painting.” The blue-eyed intruder stated with such lack of contrition that Sousuke almost questioned himself. Would have, had it not been the middle of the night, had the man standing before him not **just** rather clumsily broken into the gallery.

_If he’s trying to burgle us, the least he could do is **try** to do it right! _

In his years working security, Sousuke had never met a perpetrator so helplessly ineffective. Just how **bad** this guy was made him grit his teeth.

Minutes earlier Sousuke had hurried through the darkened gallery hallways to investigate noises that came from the breaking of the restroom window and a body thudding heavily to the floor beneath it. As he had paused outside the restroom door, he shone his flashlight around to be sure no one had exited the room yet. The location of the trespasser was confirmed as bumping noises—presumably from the banging of a shin or stubbing of a toe—followed by soft swearing, came from behind the door. The footsteps that followed were painfully loud, made louder by the echo-y environment. And from the sounds of it, he had not thought far enough ahead to have made himself familiar with these surrounds in daylight prior to his little escapade.

The ridiculous perp had then opened the door **right into** Sousuke’s chest. And rather than looking guilty or apologetic, he had the nerve to give Sousuke a slight frown. As if **_HE_** was the one who didn’t belong there in the middle of the night!

And now they stood staring each other down in the pitch-dark lobby. Sousuke shone his light in the other’s face. “We’re closed.”

“I’m here to pick up a painting.” The shorter man repeated stubbornly. It wasn’t 100% out of the question that this could be a buyer…they did have a few **really** eccentric art collectors that made purchases here from time to time…

“If you purchased a painting at the last auction, it will be available for pick-up on Friday after 6PM.” As Sousuke gave him the once-over with his flashlight, he was feeling pretty certain this guy was no buyer. His plain dark hoodie was pretty standard for default, stealthy thieves…but as he scanned lower…Bermuda shorts and flip flops. _Flip flops_. No wonder his steps had been so loud! Sousuke mentally facepalmed.

“No, I didn’t buy it.” The intruder shook his dark head. “It’s mine.”

Sousuke was at a loss. This moron was making no sense! He opted for a firm, professional approach: “Sir, you can’t be here right now. We’re closed. Now, if you’ll allow me to escort you from the premises…”

At this, blue eyes flashed angrily and the trespasser jerked back, his posture portraying a textbook fight-or-flight-mode. Raising his voice “NO, you’re not listening to me!! I’m here for my painting. It’s _mine_ , I’m not leaving without it!”

 

* * *

 

At quarter-past-two AM, Makoto and Rin arrived in their beater car to pick up Haruka.

The security guard had seemed startled at his outburst initially, but that only gave Haru the upper hand for a few seconds. Unfortunately for him, the guard was stronger, faster, and had a light source…Haru now sat, handcuffed, in a small office room in the back of the art gallery.

“We’re so sorry for this, I hope he didn’t give you too much trouble!” Makoto’s voice was only slightly muffled by the closed door.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle…hollered for a while after I stuck him in there, but I think he’s calmed down now…” The guard was saying as he opened the door, and Haru’s PJ-clad Significant Others entered the room.

Makoto gave Haru the best disapproving mother-hen expression he could muster on less than 3 hours’ sleep. Haru looked away, pout-frowning.

Rin was trying his best to only giggle discreetly, accidentally snorting, and trying not to burst outright laughing. Haru glared daggers at Rin for daring to make fun of something that mattered to him…stupid Rin, coming to his “rescue” looking like some Cruella de Vil wannabe in his fluffy leopard-print bathrobe. Haru snorted and looked away again.

Turning to the guard, Makoto offered a hand and a disarming smile “Tachibana Makoto. Thank you for calling us! We’ll make sure he gets home OK.”

As Sousuke was in the process of unlocking the handcuffs, there was an awkward too-long moment where he had no hands free to accept Makoto’s handshake. When he did, the awkward moment wouldn’t just let him go “Yamazaki. Uhhhm, Sousuke.”

Luckily, Makoto’s closed-eye smile had special powers of smoothing over awkwardness, putting everyone at ease. “Nice to meet you!” Haru shot Makoto a look of deep betrayal,

_How could you befriend the enemy?_

* * *

 

Haru was quiet the whole car ride home. Rin drove as Mako sat in the backseat beside Haru, assuring him that they could get things worked out in the morning, “But we all need our sleep right now, so please promise me you won’t sneak out again in the middle of the night. You worried us!”

When Haru didn’t respond, Makoto gently gripped his chin, turning his face to look at him straight-on. Haru shrugged non-committedly. Makoto’s face was genuinely concerned though…Haru supposed he felt a _little_ guilty for causing his lovers to worry and lose sleep. He finally gave in, nodding his silent promise.

Once they got home, Makoto carried Haru up to their apartment and put him to bed. Rin flopped face-down beside Haru, ready to pass out again immediately. Sleep-deprived giggles leaked from his lips “I can’t fucking believe you sometimes, Haru!”

Haru’s swift retaliation came in the form of a pillow to the back of Rin’s head. “Shut up!”

Makoto let out a long-suffering sigh and crawled into bed between them. Rin draped an arm and a leg over Makoto’s right side and promptly fell asleep. Haru curled up in a ball under Mako’s left arm, still fuming.


	2. Breakfast is too early to be having feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tiny chapters are tiny. Label them "FUN size!", maybe then you'll forget you're not getting as much content... ;o

“You know we both love you, right?” Makoto was speaking to a sullen Haru’s back. Haru was frying mackerel for his breakfast, and Mako was eating a bowl of cereal at the table. “We’re on your side. It’s just…there are right ways and wrong ways to resolve this situation, Haru…”

The apartment door could be heard opening and closing, a panting and sweaty Rin burst into the kitchen a moment later. “Oh! You’re up!” He grinned widely, trailing fingertips along Makoto’s shoulders as he passed him on the way to the fridge.

“How was your run, Darling?” Makoto’s warm smile morphed quickly into an expression of dismay “Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiin~” he whined, watching as Rin drank directly from the carton of orange juice rather than pouring himself a glass. “Riiin. Germs!” Rin wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, replacing the OJ in the fridge before sweeping Mako’s face up close to his own, slender fingertips gliding along his perfect jawline. “I don’t recall you having a problem with my mouth-germs.” Mako made a flustered noise as Rin proceed to kiss him soundly.

A plate heavy with fish clattered to the table loudly, breaking the magical morning kiss short. Haru glumly plopped down at the table, picking at his fried breakfast disinterestedly. Rin and Makoto shared a concerned glance, Rin slipped onto Mako’s lap to be closer to Haru’s eye level. “Babe, look…” Rin started, but when Haru gave him an icy “ _don’t even”_ look, he found himself glancing again to Makoto for support.

Knowing that in Haru’s current mindset, most questions would be met angrily or defensively, Makoto tried a placating “What would _you_ like to do, Dear?”

Haru wavered a moment, not expecting Mako to deny him an excuse for the angry outburst he had been preparing all morning. The others allowed him to mull over his thoughts in silence. Finally, with a little dip of his head that hid his eyes beneath dark bangs, he murmured “I just want it back.”

“Then…that’s what we’ll try to do!” Makoto stated with cheerful resolution.

 

* * *

 

Unfortunately for Makoto, it was easier said than done.

“So there’s pretty much no way to get it until the auction?” Rin sat across the table from his high-school ex, Nagisa, as the blond noisily inhaled a Slurpee. Rin fiddled with a ketchup packet irritatedly, poking and squeezing it.

“That’s right, it’s in the Terms of Agreement…did Haru-chan not read the rules before he signed?” Pink eyes widened expectantly at Rin. As if _he_ had any clue what went on in Haru’s head half the time!

“Hell if I know! It’s not like I’ve ever tried to take any of my pieces back after submitting them, either.” Rin ran a hand through his hair in exasperation.

Nagisa thoughtfully slurped his drink. As Rin’s unofficial (self-appointed) “agent”, he took it upon himself to keep Rin informed of all the prime galleries and exhibits that were currently accepting submissions from local artists. As a result of Nagisa’s thorough research, Rin had been successful in permeating the local art scene with his sculptures in a surprisingly short amount of time. Although Haru was just as artistically active as Rin, he had shown little to no interest in sharing his artwork—mostly watercolors—with the world, until a few weeks ago.

Haru’s deviation from his M.O. came as a shock to everyone. It remained a mystery whether it was brought on by some mental breakthrough, or a feeling of responsibility (Rin _had_ been pestering him a lot lately about not contributing to their relationship financially), or a flare of his competitive streak in reaction to Rin’s sudden success. Regardless of his reasons, Haru had recently approached Nagisa and asked to be put in touch with the gallery that would be most likely to accept his submission immediately.

“The gallery Haru-chan submitted his piece to…they specifically put on this exhibit for the buyers that are looking to support local artists. The exhibit goes for a couple months, so the public and buyers get a chance to view fresh local art. Afterwards, every piece in the exhibit is auctioned off, and the artists and gallery split the profit. It’s good publicity, and a chance to earn a little…There isn’t any option not to sell the art piece at the end, though…they attract buyers to this event by saying ‘you have a chance to own any piece you see on display in this exhibit!’…It’s pretty clear what the event is for, so I’m unsure how Haru-chan could’ve missed the main point of it…maybe he just changed his mind?”

“Sheesh…what a numbskull!” Rin sighed exaggeratedly. “Makoto was brilliant enough to promise him we’d try to get it back, so…” _I guess we’ve got no choice._ He squished the ketchup packet around in his hand restlessly. “Our only option is to bid on it in the auction?”

Nagisa had reached the bottom of his Slurpee, and seemed determined not to let a single drop go to waste. He guzzled as the end of his beverage crackled its dying noises. For about a minute and a half.

Rin’s eyebrow was twitching in irritation as Nagisa finally set the cup down, the amused sparkle in his eye hinting that he’d only drawn it out so long to get on Rin’s nerves. “Correct!” He exclaimed. “Ooohhh, are you and Mako going to win back Haru’s painting for him? That’s sooo sweet of you! How romantic~”

“Shut up!” Rin huffed and glowered unconvincingly. “He just better not have submitted anything decent enough to get other bids.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't pretend I have any idea how anything works. Artistic license! XD


	3. Cadmium is Red, Cerulean is Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annnnd the rating jumps up. Sorry, not sorry. The fandom needs more artsy lovin'! X///D

  
Haruka and Rin were curled up in bed, waiting for Makoto to come home for supper. The early darkness of winter made it feel late in the evening, though it wasn't really. Haru shivered, and Rin wrapped himself around Haru from behind (Haru loved spooning), kissing the back of his neck. Haru hummed a happy acknowledgement. _Well, at least he's in a better mood than this morning._.. Rin scooted his upper torso back just enough to rub little circles into Haru's shoulders. Rin gave really good massages. **_Really_** good (sculptor's hands, after all), and he knew it. He didn't feel too guilty about using this skill to his advantage, especially as he felt Haru begin to melt under his touch.  
  
When he felt his partner was sufficiently boneless, Rin ventured a delicate whisper into his ear, "Hey, Haru?"  
  
Haru grunted in response.  
  
"Why did you submit your painting to a sale exhibit?" Rin had to bite his tongue to keep himself from adding a snarky "in the first place" to the end of his question.  
  
Haru shrugged drowsily. Rin nibbled his own lip in exasperation, he wasn't getting anywhere with this!  
  
"Nagisa said it was pretty clear in the Terms of Agreement..." Rin nudged Haru's back.  
  
\----------------------------[FLASHBACK]----------------------------  
  
Haru is filling out the art submission forms with his name and address, sighing wistfully because Makoto is at work and not here to do it for him. He puts Mako's phone number anywhere one is required. Beside him, Nagisa wiggles excitedly, "Haru-chan, after this we need to go to the mall for a celebratory ice cream!"  
  
Haruka shrugs non-committally. Nagisa begins to rub his head into Haru's shoulder impatiently, "But Haruuuuu-chaaaan~ It's your first entry to a real gallery! A monumental occasion worth celebrating!"  
  
"Mmm..."  
  
Nagisa then gets a crafty gleam in his eye, "They also just installed a new wishing fountain near the food court...have you been to see it yet?" Pink eyes watching Haru's face intently.  
  
Haru's eyes light up. _Bingo~!_  
  
"Hurry and finish up so we can go get ice cream and toss a penny in the fountain!"  
  
Haru speedily signs all the lines marked with an "X", barely glancing at the pages. He stands to depart, "Let's go."  
  
"Yaaaaay~!"  
  
\----------------------------[END FLASHBACK]----------------------------  
  
"Oh." Haru sat up and blinked owlishly at Rin over his shoulder. "No one reads those, though."  
  
Rin gaped and flailed his arms in disbelief. "REALLY?!? Really-really?!?!?! You just...didn't **read** it?!!?"  
  
Haru shook his head. His big blue eyes were so deep and serious...  
  
Rin couldn't take it. He sat up, brow creasing angrily, ready to give Haru a piece of his mind--  
  
A jingle of keys sounded outside their door. Momentarily forgetting his frustrations with one lover, the redhead shot out of bed to greet the other. Haru meandered out of the bedroom behind him, pausing to observe Rin and Makoto's needy kiss. Rin pulled back breathlessly, "Missed you."  
  
Mako's cheeks had turned a bit pink, lethally adorable when combined with his tired smile. Haru squeezed inbetween the two to koala-cling to Makoto.  
  
"I'll get supper started...sit down, relax...it'll be ready in a few minutes!" Rin lead Mako by the hand (Haru still clinging to him) to the kitchen table, urging him to take a seat. The redhead had already cut up a bunch of ingredients for his trademark stir-fry, so it didn't take him long to whip up their meal. Haru was quietly mournful over the lack of mackerel in it, but Mako gratefully wolfed down the first plate and shyly requested seconds, thanking Rin repeatedly.

Mondays were Rin’s night to cook, and Haru’s night to do the dishes. Rin had to convince Makoto to leave the dish washing to Haru in favor of heading to the bedroom. By the time Haru rejoined his lovers, both were wearing significantly less clothing, sitting cross-legged on the bed, and Mako had streaks of red paint covering his left pec.

Shortly after the beginning of their relationship, the trio had discovered they all really enjoyed a bit of artistic foreplay…the sensual, slick drag of a wet paintbrush against skin. The bedside tables now regularly held palettes, paints, and brushes in addition to lube and toys.

“I’m doing a muscle study on him tonight.” Rin answered Haru’s question without the need for him to verbalize it. He turned to the nightstand to mix a deeper shade of red for details and shadow.

Haruka stripped in record time (a sight that Makoto still fondly blushed to witness, though it had long been established as one of Haru’s innate skills). A thoughtful crease formed between Haru’s brows. “Needs more blue.”

At Haru’s two-cents, Rin glared up from his work, mouth open for a comeback—  
  
“If you only use red, he’ll look like a Titan.” One of Haru’s brows quirked up, a silent taunting question: _Do you have some fantasy about sleeping with Titans? Is THAT what you’re into?_

Rin flailed his arms for a moment, sputtering. “But, but! Muscles ARE red. It’s accurate!” Unfortunately, he had forgotten that he still had a loaded brush in one hand. When Haru raised his head again, he looked like a beautifully blood-splattered crime scene. Completing the look with murderous glare.

Makoto placed a hand on each of their shoulders, and they broke their death-stare to acknowledge his presence. “Darliiiiinnngs!” His pleading tone and slight flush brought them back to the activities at hand. To Rin, Mako softly stated, “A little more color could be pretty.”

Turning to his blue-eyed lover, Makoto watched helplessly as a droplet of red paint dripped off Haru’s nose onto the sheets. Mako let out a resigned sigh; they would probably never have a set of sheets without paint stains on them. He caught the next drip with his thumb, wiping the pigment over Haru’s cheek.

Rin started laying color over Mako’s left side in earnest, manhandling his arm into whatever position he needed in order to cover all available skin. At the deltoid, he added a little Cerulean blue to his Cadmium red, turning the muscle a plum-wine shade. He continued this pattern of adding a little more blue each muscle, so the bicep and trapezius were a rich warm purple, the tricep and sternocleidomastoid a cooler indigo-y hue, the forearm and neck fading into blues…

Haru had wasted no time in mixing his colors, and Rin jumped at the unexpected sensation of cool, slick paint being spread across his thigh. A quick glance downwards revealed a haphazardly applied large patch of bright Manganese blue across the top and side of his left thigh, reaching up to his hipbone. He squirmed a bit, biting his lip. “That’s cold!”

Haru grabbed his knee firmly, hard enough to hurt, “Hold still!” as he dipped a large round brush into his Chinese white. Rin turned back to his own human canvas, admiring Makoto’s magnificent muscles flowing under his skin, each clearly defined in its own color. He readied a smaller brush to add details, when he heard Haru stifle a gasp.

Makoto had shifted downwards to take the majority of Haru’s mostly-flaccid length into his mouth. Haru looked completely spaced-out, paused in time with his brush still raised, mouth hanging open slightly, pupils blown wide. Rin loved seeing Haru surprised like this. Loved that he and Mako could make that impassive face show such expressions. Taking a fistful of dark hair, he kissed Haru thoroughly, “Not done yet, are you?” He smirked tauntingly, knowing full well the incredible sensations Makoto’s mouth was capable of producing.

Haru blinked quickly a few times, trying to snap himself out of it enough to function. His eyes were soft with appreciation as he ran his free hand through Makoto’s hair. Mako’s smile was mostly apparent in his eyes, his mouth being otherwise occupied.

Haru swallowed, breathing heavily, and reloaded his brush with fresh white paint. In his currently distracted state, everything Haru painted came across as carelessly impressionistic. He added the white in raw, single, elongated-teardrop strokes. While the strokes were still wet he dragged little triangular points out of each side, and they suddenly became the silhouettes of koifish as viewed from above.

Rin continued adding little lines and shading to his muscle study, but kept pausing to watch Makoto at work. It was a thing of beauty, truly. Running his detail brush along his larger lover’s neck, he could even feel Mako swallow. Incredible.

Haru erratically added bold red and orange markings to the koi shapes, and over the whole piece he dabbed some delicate light pink blots that Makoto assumed were meant to be sakura petals on the surface of the water. Thought he bickered with Rin a lot, Haru’s affection for the redhead came out in small ways like this.

Makoto slipped his tongue up Haru’s now-hardened dick, dipping into the slit for a taste before fully engulfing him again. He reveled in the way Haru’s abs contracted in reaction, and the sharp inhale he heard from above. Bringing his head back up, he pinched the tip of Haru’s foreskin between his lips gently, and tugged. The brush fell right out of Haru’s hand onto the sheets, but at this point none of them cared about the mess. Both Haru’s hands wound themselves into Mako’s hair, his hungry eyes boring into the meadow-green depths of Mako’s eyes.

Mako jolted in response to a new paintbrush wielded by Rin. It was loaded with cold, wet lube, and running up and down his own erection in lazy, long strokes. He choked out a whine around his mouthful of Haru. One of his large hands rested on Haruka’s hip, squeezing lightly when Haru pulled his hair harder than necessary. Rin reloaded his brush with lube, applying it to Mako with somewhat less precision than his earlier painting, watching his lovers with a touch-starved gaze.

Haru leaned back on both arms, his chest was heaving; they could tell he was close to losing it. Rin’s dick twitched in anticipation. Mako was breathing heavily through his nose, working Haru a bit faster now, cutting the teasing entirely. Rin leaned forward, swiping a thumb over one of Haru’s nipples as he kissed him again. This was a slower kiss than earlier, heated and passionate. Haru’s body jerked violently, Makoto had to quickly pin his hips down with both hands to avoid being choked. Rin caught Haru with an arm under his shoulders, Haru’s breathy moan being released as their lips parted.

As he was lowered to the mattress by Rin, Haru suddenly found Makoto’s face in his, where Mako deposited a strong-tasting kiss. Haru lazily rolled his tongue around inside Mako’s mouth; the sharing gesture mildly sensual for them both. Rin scrunched up his nose; he _really_ disliked the taste of come, but as long as Haru made sure Mako’s mouth was cleaned out before he kissed him again...Rin opted for placing a few choice hickeys on Haru’s neck.

Mako broke away with a flinch, whining “Haruuuu~”. Rin could see Haru was teasing Mako now, trailing his chilled toes along Mako’s inner thighs. “Hmmm…He’s awful needy-sounding tonight…don’t keep him waiting too long, Rin.” Haru’s blissed-out face broke into a slight smile. He took over the lube brush from Rin, so Rin and Mako would both be free of distraction to prep Rin’s entrance.

Rin hissed at the first of Mako’s slicked fingers breaching his body, oversensitive from the wait, his angry-red tip drooling pre-come. He writhed impatiently. Makoto was impatient too, but he would never do anything that might hurt Rin. He painstakingly took his time stretching, adding fingers, softly placing kisses along Rin’s skin.

Mako’s body betrayed his want, rolling his hips eagerly into Haru’s brush, trying for more stimuli. Any time Mako seemed to be getting too excited, Haru would stop all movement and grip him firmly around the base of his cock, causing Makoto to whimper pathetically. “Shhh, shh…soon.” Haru ran a soothing hand up and down Mako’s side.

“Babe, just get in me already.” Rin fidgeted. Makoto opened his mouth to protest, but Rin was faster. Spinning around and swatting Haru’s hand away, he grasped Mako’s generous length in one hand, hefting it and pumping once. Mako’s eyes fluttered closed, moaning under his breath. Rin nudged Haru aside, crawling under Makoto’s larger frame and wrapping his legs around Mako’s waist. “It’s cool, I’m good, I’m _ready_.” The last word came out a little raw, pleading and lusty. He guided one of Mako’s hands into his hair, but Mako moved it down to cup the side of his face instead.

With his free hand placed on the side of Rin’s waist for leverage, Makoto slowly opened his eyes, and in the same moment, smoothly slipped all the way inside Rin. Rin held that burning green gaze for a second before his own eyes squeezed closed and his back arced high off the bed. Rin’s mouth opened in the beginning of a cry, but Makoto’s lips covered his own, drowning all sound.

Haru had extracted himself from the bed and now perched in a plush chair in the corner of their small room, a sketchpad in his naked lap. He and Rin often took turns sitting here, practicing gesture drawing while the other two were having sex. Not once removing his eyes from his lovers, Haru captured the perfect arch of Rin’s back in soft graphite.

As the pace of their lovemaking picked up, Haru had a hard time focusing on anything but the way Makoto’s perfectly sculpted glutes clenched on his inward thrusts. He found himself sketching that glorious ass in great detail, paying more attention than usual to his shading.

Rin was rasping little broken pieces of encouragement to Makoto, “Mmmhh, your angle’s…fucking fantastic!!…faster, _please_ …nnn, Babe, god!” while Mako nibbled his earlobe and whispered sweet nothings to him.

Rin’s arms wrapped around Mako’s shoulders, and Makoto brought one strong arm underneath his lover, supporting his weight as the smaller man curved upwards to meet his movements.

Makoto came first, panting and collapsing on Rin. The larger rolled off to the side and covered his face with both hands, blushing, both ashamed that he pretty much just squashed the redhead and angry with himself that he couldn’t finish Rin first.

“Hey, hey!” Rin pried at his fingers until he could see the emotional green eyes. Kissing the tip of Makoto’s nose, “It’s fine, don’t sweat it. Just--Here,” He wrapped Makoto’s larger hand around his neglected dick, and kept his own hand over Mako’s. Setting a quick and punishing pace that pushed him over the edge in about 20 seconds, covering Makoto’s stomach in his pleasure. He leaned his head onto Makoto’s shoulder wearily, and Mako held him through his afterglow.

Haru took the time to finish up a speed-sketch of Rin’s orgasm face before climbing out of the chair to get the others a towel.

While Mako sat up to wipe down his front, Haru laid down next to Rin, face-to-face. He brushed a strand of hair behind Rin’s ear…it was matted with turquoise pigment; Makoto must have grabbed at Rin’s thigh at some point and later run that hand through his hair. Well, there were colorful smears all over all three of them, as well as the sheets, so…Haru shrugged to no one in particular, and kissed Rin softly. His redhead lover was almost asleep already.

Makoto smiled down at the two of them. Lying down behind Haru, he nestled his face into the dark silky hair and breathed in his scent, wrapping his arms around him blissfully.


	4. I'll Have the "Wanton" Soup

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slow updates are slooow, so sorry! But please enjoy some domestic fluff and teasing~ ;D

It was hot. Haru couldn't sleep. Everything was just too hot. He wormed his way out from between the two heavy slumbering bodies. Rin mumbled a combative "you'd like to think that, wouldn't you?!", but a glance at his face told Haru he was still out cold. _Stupid Rin. Too loud even when he's asleep._  
  
When Haru flicked on the light in the bathroom, he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of his own reflection. He'd forgotten about the diagonal red paint splatter that graced his face.  
  
Haruka often had trouble sleeping, and there was no foolproof solution for his insomnia, but a bath would certainly be welcome about now. He set the water to run lukewarmish into their modest tub. While waiting for it to fill, he splashed a little cold water from the sink on his face, rubbing over the dried paint in little circles until it dissipated into rosy droplets.  
  
He slid into the mostly-full tub, sinking into the water up to his nose. Exhaustion made his eyelids heavy, but closing them brought him no relief; it was just a cruel trick, a momentary tease along the edges of sleep. He just couldn't find the "off" switch for his mind. He thought about sleep, and how much easier it came to Rin and Makoto (Rin often slept either partially on top of Makoto or tangled limbs with him, to "anchor" their larger lover, as Mako had a bad sleepwalking habit). He thought about that new wishing fountain at the mall, wondered what the maintenance schedule for it was.  And he thought about his most beloved painting, the child of his mind, sitting in the dark gallery with that huge guard walking past at regular intervals...  
  
 _Sleep, sleep, sleep_.  Not that willing his mind to shut down actually made it happen, but at this point he was so weary that he began to consider passing out and drowning in the tub preferable to continuing to exist in a conscious state. At least then he'd have been taken by the water, peacefully...  
  
He started at a weird air current softly hitting the side of his face. Snapping his eyes open, Haru was met with Rin's face, close enough to his own that he couldn't bring him into focus. "Hey," Ruby eyes blinked slowly, "...you OK?"  
  
Haru shrugged, because it was too much effort to make words.  
  
"Can't sleep?" Rin was familiar enough with this situation by now, and he didn't really expect Haru to answer.  Offering a hand, he helped Haru out of the tub, and grabbed a towel to dry him off. He hated the listless look in those blue eyes, hated that they hadn't yet found a way to guarantee Haru a solid night's sleep. But they had been working on developing a couple methods to help soothe his racing mind...  
  
The two of them settling back into bed caused Mako to stir. Rin felt guilty about waking him up; Mako was the only one of them that had a work and school schedule to adhere to...but he was a vital part of their get-Haru-to-sleep technique.  
  
Makoto propped himself up on one elbow, green eyes blinking blearily, still sleep-filled. Rin reached over to the bedside table to flick on a low lamp and retrieve an old tablet. Rin kept this tablet loaded with reading material for nights such as this (the others trusted his taste; he WAS the most well-read, after all). Tonight's reading was a selection of poetry by e.e. cummings.  
  
Mako sat up against the headboard, Rin snuggled up beside him with chin perched on his shoulder. A blanket-wrapped Haru nestled between Mako's arms and legs, leaning back into his warm chest.  
  
"...anyone lived in a pretty how town  
(with up so floating many bells down)  
spring summer autumn winter  
he sang his didn’t he danced his did...."  
  
There was no arguing; Makoto had the most soothing reading voice in the universe. Rin dozed off within the first few lines, and was now drooling a little. After the fourth poem, Haru was so still that Mako made to put the tablet away. But a soft request floated up from the blanket-bundle, "One more?" and Makoto couldn't refuse.

* * *

  
The next morning, Makoto and Rin woke to a Haru-less bed.

 It wasn't that alarming. Haruka often went off and did his own thing, sometimes taking a small watercolor travel kit and journal, other times simply "gathering inspiration", without leaving notes or letting them know where he'd be. They just hoped he had managed a few hours' sleep before he left.  
  
Much as they'd both have loved to stay in bed and make out for the rest of the morning, there were responsibilities that couldn't be ignored. Makoto's first class this morning started at 9:30...leaving them just enough time to at least shower and eat together, provided they didn’t get too…distracted.

 _Easier said than done._ Rin’s eyes took in Mako’s sculpted back, the little trails the water made running down the planes of his muscles, as he shampooed the taller man’s hair. When Mako turned to face him with benignly glowing smile, Rin swallowed hard, ran his fingers up Mako’s forearms. Makoto leaned down to kiss the redhead. Rin cleared his throat, “We’re responsible adults now, yeah? I’m not about to let you make yourself late for class.” somehow it didn’t come out with quite the strong tone of resolve he was aiming for.

An innocent blink of green eyes, “What?” As if Mako was ever to blame for initiating things at inappropriate times anyway.

Rin looked downwards, to the colorful paint-stained water spiraling around their drain. “I’m just saying, we can’t...we have to be good, stay on track with this whole ‘responsible real grown-ups’ thing…but…” Rin stood on tiptoe to whisper in Makoto’s ear, gripped his forearms tighter to steady himself, hoped his lover could feel the heat of his breath on his ear, “I expect you to help me make up for it tonight.”

Makoto’s eyes widened and Rin found himself pinned against the shower wall, breath stolen from him in a slow, soft, deliberate kiss. “Okay,” Makoto breathed out in agreement as they broke the kiss. Rin’s breathing was much hoarser, hips twitching involuntarily when their soft cocks pressed together for the briefest moment. Rin wondered if Makoto genuinely lacked THAT much self-awareness…or if this was Mako’s subtle way of teasing him? He hurriedly brushed past Makoto on his way out of the shower. He had to get out ASAP, before his body betrayed him. Already his mind was picking away at the fraying edges of his willpower. _We maaay have time for just a smidge…Mako DOES come pretty quickly, after all…_

Towel-drying himself quickly, Rin slipped back into his PJ pants and tank and escaped to the kitchen, determined not to give in to the temptation. _Real adults, be a real, responsible, mature, reliable adult..._

By the time a fresh Mako emerged, dressed and ready for class, there was a steaming plate of eggs and toast waiting for him on their little table. Rin was already seated at the table, absently eating his own toast as he punched numbers into a calculator and paid their bills. His damp hair was pulled back messily, a pen skewered through the silken red twist, and a little frown of concentration creased his brow. Makoto thought he looked absolutely perfect like this, sighing happily as he dug into his eggs. Red eyes flicked up questioningly.  
  
“You’re so beautiful, Rin…”

Rin flushed, tried to recover with a quick, “You’re not so bad yourself, Babe.”

Makoto just giggled at him knowingly. He polished off the rest of his breakfast, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and kissed Rin goodbye. Rin couldn’t fail to notice the little circles the warm hand placed on his lower back made, a silent reassuring promise. Mako wasn’t playing fair at all. He bit Makoto’s bottom lip gently, a promise of his own.

“Have a good day, Babe. Love you.”

“You too, Hun.”

Rin mailed the bills on his walk to the studio space he and Haru rented. He had swapped the PJ pants for some comfy indigo harem pants that already bore signs of being his favorite sculpting pants. Little pieces of dried clay and clay dust graced the thighs, where he often wiped his hands while he worked (a bad habit). It wasn’t quite as warm in the studio as it was at home, so he also swiped an old button-up flannel shirt of Mako’s to serve as his jacket.

Last week, a major piece of Rin’s current project had taken a dive off of the work station, setting him behind schedule by roughly six hours’ work. He’d be pulling a long day today, trying to make up for it, as the exhibition was only a few weeks away.

This project featured multiple sculpted wildcats, each scaled down to about the size of a housecat, lounging on a huge wooden treelike structure. Rin had sanded the wood for hours, perfecting the flowing lines of the “branches”. He wanted it smoother than driftwood.

The tiger was the closest to being finished, draped over one branch lazily, all rippling muscled power and flowing lines. Rin was really proud of it. He **had** also been very proud of the cheetah, until he swept the pieces of it from the floor. Today he would set that loss behind him, start anew, make a BETTER cheetah, look always to the future, to improving. He had to think of the cheetah from before as only practice for the real deal. Had to put the past behind him so he could move forward. Taking a deep breath, he dived into his creative zone and lost himself in the process.

About 7 hours in, he was getting an ache from being hunched over his work so long. He took a 15 minute break to walk over to the café Makoto worked at in the afternoons after class. Makoto made cute little hearts in the foam on top of Rin’s coffee, which Rin thought was adorable and romantic, though he’d never admit it. He’d rather show their affection a little more boldly, but something told him that dragging his cashier over the counter to make out with might backfire for them both. He settled for whispering indecent things until Makoto turned bright red, then left with a suggestive wink.

Rin put in another 3 hours at the studio before heading home, arriving moments before Makoto. They started making out the second the door was closed, but Makoto stopped Rin before they got too far, holding up a bag of Chinese takeout. “It’ll get cold…” Rin’s stomach gurgled as if in agreement, eating didn’t sound like such a bad plan…

Haruka snuck in the door at about 8:00, cold and starving, to join them for supper. He offered no explanation for his absence, and they didn’t grill him about it.

Makoto comfortably filled the quiet with insignificant chatter about work and school. He felt pretty confident in his current grade in one class. He had earned a new embroidered coffee bean on his café apron. That made 3 now, over half way to being a senior barista! Oh, and he’d seen that nice tall guard from the gallery stop by for coffee before beginning his shift…

Haru snorted and frowned a little at the mention of the guard, and Makoto switched topics quickly while feeding Haru a dumpling to appease him. Rin picked at something stuck in his teeth.

* * *

   
The great thing about takeout is, there aren’t any dishes to wash afterwards. Making it a lot easier to move on quickly to more _interesting_ activities.


	5. The Great Thing About Takeout Is

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well crud, it took me a while to update this time!  
> Pretty much just smut and some passage of time. :P

Haru rarely took the initiative in any decision-making part of their love life, usually content to lay back and entrust himself to his lovers. So Rin and Mako were shocked to find Haru making an effort at taking the lead tonight, and intrigued enough to humor him.

It had started out lazy enough on Haru’s part, laying with his head in Rin’s lap as Rin sat, naked, in Mako’s. Makoto and Rin had been messily making out when Rin suddenly pulled back with a hiss. Haru shifted so his angle was better, and bit the inside of Rin’s thigh again, hard enough to leave a mark. Makoto glanced worriedly to Rin’s face, and shot Haru a brief disapproving look. Haru was not deterred, pointedly staring at the goosebumps rising along Rin’s skin. Rin had swallowed hard, leaned his head against Makoto’s bare shoulder, and husked out a quiet “do it again.”

Makoto’s eyes almost bugged out of his head, and when Haru kept eye contact with him as he bit Rin again, Makoto’s strangled noise was just as loud as Rin’s low moan. Rin felt the press of Makoto’s arousal below him.

Rin climbed out of Mako’s lap, kneeling on the bed in front of him, and began massaging Makoto’s abdomen, thighs, and hips, through his pants. In an uncharacteristically proactive gesture, Haru had tugged at Mako’s pant cuffs until Rin lifted Makoto’s hips for Haru to helpfully slide the pants from their larger lover.

Haru nibbled the newly exposed skin of Makoto’s inner thigh gently; nothing like the bites he gave to Rin. Makoto could be considered something of a wuss when it came to pain, and the others always tried to be considerate of him. “H-Haru…” He was blushing madly, and it was a **good** look on him.

Rin dug their paints and some lube out of the nightstand. He could tell by the altered tempo of Makoto’s breathing that it wouldn’t take much to set him off. They would have to take care if they wanted him to last. He resumed massaging Mako’s muscular thighs, outside, inside, rolling his thumbs in little circles over his hipbones and the skin around the base of his straining cock, never directly touching him. Makoto whimpered, “Rin, don’t j-just tease…”

Now located behind Rin, Haru had stripped and made a show of prepping himself, ass in the air. Makoto groaned, beyond overwhelmed. The feeling of Rin’s steady and warm hands combined with the sight of Haru’s slick fingers stretching himself…it was too much to take, but not enough to bring him over the edge. Both were taking their time, painstakingly slow and teasing…

To move things along, Makoto very firmly guided Rin to face away from him, lubing up his own fingers before carefully working Rin open. Rin found his face inches from Haru’s ass. His eyes locked onto a little runaway dribble of lube that was making its way down Haru’s pale leg. Haru was panting and making almost-silent enticing little noises. Rin licked up the lube dribble, startling a hastily sucked-in breath from Haru. Makoto’s breath hitched watching, and he had to remind himself not to hurry with prepping Rin. Haru threw a challenging look Rin’s way “think you can paint while…?”

Rin’s eyes gleamed with competition, until Mako’s finger brushed his prostate and his body betrayed him, shuddering violently. “Mix me a color.” He grit out between his teeth. Haru smirked and squeezed several drops of paint onto a palette.

By the time he was presented with the rosy mauve shade, Rin was having a hard time focusing on anything. He briefly had a thought about his sculpting; _I should probably practice painting exotic cat markings_ …He applied tiger stripes, with shaking hands, to Haru’s hipbones and his lower back, reaching halfway up his spine. Not one single brushstroke was administered smoothly, thanks to Makoto.

Pulling away from Makoto long enough to roll over beneath him, Rin declared with much frustration, “Enough already! Yeah?” He rolled his hips up to meet Makoto’s, both of them groaning, finally **touching** , having anticipated this all day long. Rin was so ready for Makoto to take him, had been thinking about it for the entire day. From the looks of things, Mako shared this sentiment, cupping Rin’s ass with fingers dancing along the cleft, squeezing firmly.

It was at this point that Haru wormed his undulating, wet-paint-covered body between them, facing Rin. Rin “tch!”ed loudly in brief disappointment at the loss of contact, and Makoto just seemed startled and confused. It was definitely unusual for Haru to try to drive the show like this. Rin and Mako shared a look over Haru’s shoulder, which mostly consisted of Rin being grumpy and Mako giving his _“oh well~”_ smile that meant that Haru was going to get his way no matter what.

Haru turned his head to share an almost teasingly chaste kiss with Makoto, side-eying Rin and raising one brow. Rin responded by grabbing Haru by his hair and kissing him soundly. It was pretty satisfying to pull back and see Haru looking tousled and flushed, Rin was proud of his handiwork.

Makoto ran his hands up and down Haru’s slender torso, massaging his sides, peppering kisses along his shoulders. Meanwhile, Haru snuck a (cold!) hand down to wrap around Rin’s erection. He quickly, very lightly, whisked his hand up and down a few times. Rin’s eyes were closed and he swallowed loudly. Haru changed tactics, switching his grip to painfully snug, and his strokes intensely slow, his thumb a steady pressure from base to tip each time.

“Unghhh” Rin’s head dropped into Haru’s shoulder, holding onto Haru’s arms for support, with his face hidden in his own hair and Haru’s skin. “Hey,” Haru nudged his head with his shoulder, momentarily paused the motion of his hand to guarantee Rin’s attention. Rin weakly raised his head enough to make eye contact with Haru, nodded when he saw the serious look in his blue eyes.

Mako helped Haru position Rin a bit better, kept a soothing hand kneading Rin’s thigh as Haru made his entrance. Haru was deathly still for a while, head low, using his fringe to hide his eyes.

“Hey,” Rin’s voice sounded like it was being dragged over a gravel road, “Hey. Don’t hide,” he plead as he reached up to brush the dark hair aside. Haru quickly buried his face in the crook of Rin’s neck, but not before Rin caught a glimpse of the most raw, reverent expression he’d ever seen from Haru.

Rin both loved and hated when Haru made love to him. Haru’s natural rhythm was excruciatingly slow for Rin. They were in no rush to hurry it tonight, but Rin had been anticipating all day long, and it was a little frustrating to be subjected to an even longer wait. He tried encouraging Haru to speed up, snapping his hips up enthusiastically, but Haru only frowned and pinned his hips down for his efforts. “Impatient.” Accepting his fate for the night, Rin turned his body to putty in Haru’s hands, for which he was rewarded with little nibbles and suckles along the side of his neck. Haru’s body continued to move over and through him like slow rolling waves, strong and steady, until Haru was ready for Makoto.

Mako was also quite impatient by this point, but Haru managed to make a soft “Stay still,” sound like a command, and Makoto was nothing if not eager to please his lovers. Haru rolled himself back onto Makoto until he was fully sheathed, taking a few deep breaths in adjustment. Then he began to move between them, sloooowly, an ebb and flow. Makoto’s eyes just about rolled back in his skull with his genuine sigh of relief, and Rin felt sorry for making him wait so long.

Rin snagged a dry, unused paintbrush from the abandoned supplies spread across their sheets. With a devilish grin, he maneuvered it around Haru’s side to tickle at Mako’s neck and nipples. “Haaahhh~” Haru felt the moist, shaky exhales on the back of his neck. With Rin’s skillful teasing, Makoto’s resolve to stay still wavered; a cautious hand hovered at Haru’s waist as his hips lurched forward once. “Don’t move,” Haru choked out, resuming his own rhythm after a beat. Mako’s pupils dilated a little at being told what to do, and he kept as still as a statue. Rin blushed and interlaced his fingers with Makoto, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze.

Soon, Makoto was biting at his own lip, trying to hold back his breathy little whimpers. Rin ran his paintbrush lightly up and down Mako’s side. Meeting Haru’s gaze, he could see how tired Haru was. It wasn’t that Haru was in bad shape, but he definitely wasn’t accustomed to doing all of the work for all three of them. Glancing to Makoto’s face, then back to Haru, Rin stated “He’s going to...”

Haru nodded and slowed his pace, reached behind himself to touch Makoto’s flank fondly. “Makoto. Go ahead.”

After he was given the green light to move, it took Makoto less than a minute to reach climax. Rin’s dick twitched in appreciation for the bliss spreading across their brunette lover’s face. Lying beside the others on the bed, Mako took Rin’s hand and held it, smiling at them both drowsily.

Haru resumed with his easy undulating movements, but he was panting heavily now. His arms shook from supporting himself for so long, and his face was flushed and sweaty, hair plastered to his temples with the perspiration. His thrusts became more deliberate, his face scrunched in effort, and it occurred to Rin that Haru was trying to hold out for him. Haru wanted _him_ to come first. _For crying out loud._ Rin didn’t think he himself would come from this rhythm tonight. It was a sweetly, painfully slow build, and as nicely as he knew it would reward him…Haru didn’t have that much steam left.

Stroking Haru’s cheek tenderly, “C’mon, you did good.” Haru was beyond words to respond, wavering and swallowing before giving Rin a small nod. He rolled his pelvis deeply several more times, and collapsed upon Rin, shuddering and spent. Rin held him through his orgasm while Makoto placed a hand on Haru’s lower back, rubbing in little circles. Haru felt so vulnerable in their arms at this moment, they felt humbled that he trusted them to see him like this. They embraced him until his breathing slowed to normal again. Mako ran his fingers through Haru’s hair affectionately and gently helped him get off of Rin.

Haru settled, dazed, on his stomach cuddled up beside Rin. Makoto took pity on Rin, seeing how keyed-up he still was, cock straining and drooling precome down itself. Rin barely had to shift his lustfully lidded gaze to Makoto before he was being stroked in earnest, no more teasing. Rin’s moans rose steadily in volume as he neared his end, and Makoto would have the decency to feel sorry for their neighbors, later.

Rin felt his tip engulfed in wet heat, caught a fleeting glimpse of Makoto’s ruffled hair bobbing diligently near his groin. But then Haru, who he thought may have fallen asleep, bit him _hard_ in the crook of his shoulder and neck, and he came all over Makoto’s face.

 

* * *

 

In the weeks that followed, Haru was gone all day, every day, until suppertime, still volunteering no information as to where he disappeared to. But when he arrived home each night, he wasn't distant-acting towards them...If anything, his mood improved and he mostly dropped the topic of his painting, knowing that they were doing all they could about it.  
  
On nights that they _didn't_ head straight to bed after supper, Haru would curl up on the couch with a sketchbook and re-watch their DVR'd recordings of The Blue Planet. Since this seemed to be the only time available to spend with Haru anymore, Rin and Makoto would join him on the couch (though, they'd seen each of these episodes countless times already). Haru was ridiculously engrossed, leaning forward intently, and his lovers sometimes wondered if he'd forgotten how to blink.  
  
Rin would get fidgety sitting still with nothing to do with his hands, so to avoid reverting back to his old nail-biting habits, he crafted during these TV nights. He could knit and crochet without even looking; it was just a soothing, mindless activity to keep his hands busy. None of them **ever** had to worry about buying hats or scarves. Some nights he would also weave baskets, others he tried learning new patterns of friendship bracelets.  
  
Makoto had asked Rin to show him how to make some things too, so he could join in on the crafting time. Eventually this evolved into Makoto braiding Rin's hair while Rin crafted, using his phone to look up new styles to try. Rin began sitting on the floor in front of Mako for better access, and if he got bored of his crafting, he'd massage Mako's feet instead.  
  
Haru was always so riveted to his show that he rarely observed his lovers' activities during it. He didn't even look down to his sketchbook, just doodling blindly, if he drew at all. When the show was finished and he looked over at Rin, sometimes he was so taken aback that he couldn't hide the shock on his face. Makoto and Rin felt so stupidly accomplished any time they could make Haru show a surprised face, they made a game of coming up with the most elaborate and absurd hairstyles possible with Rin's hair length. So far, the winning place for Best Expression Earned was a tie between cornrows and a medieval up-do.

 

* * *

 

 The time came for Rin's sculpture to go on display. Mako took a day off work to help Rin move it to the gallery and assemble it. Rin had carefully packed the clay cats individually in cardboard boxes filled with shredded paper the night before. Makoto drove while Rin hovered over some of the more delicate pieces in the backseat, swearing every time they hit a bump in the road, avoiding getting poked in the eye by his tree-branch segments, and praying that everything would make it there intact. Rin grumbled about how far away this gallery was (of COURSE his most fragile pieces always wound up in galleries all the way across town, it would've been _too damn easy_ if they were the nearby ones!) and Makoto tried to distract him from escalating the paranoia ("That nice guard from Haru's gallery has been getting two coffees at the beginning of his shift lately, I wonder if he's found a girlfriend? He seemed pretty embarrassed when I asked about it...I'm thinking I may start putting hearts in the foam on top of the second coffee...").  
  
Despite Mako's best efforts, Rin remained on the brink of freaking out until the last piece was unpacked and all items confirmed unscathed by the trip. Assembly took several hours, but when they at last stepped back to view the whole display, they both agreed it was totally worth it. Rin stared at his own work as if seeing it for the first time. Makoto smiled to see his chest puffed up proudly, the well-earned gleam in his eye, and gave him a (somewhat sweaty) congratulatory hug.  
  
Rin had gone with a light and muted color scheme for his paints: tans, grays, taupes, creams, no black. Each of the cats was painted with markings that belonged to a different species of exotic cat than itself. It kind of messed with one's head at first glance, but Rin thought it made the piece that much more visually interesting. His sculpting style this time was organic and fluid, bordering realism, only slightly more defined musculature than you would see in nature. It was as if the fur was taken away, the lines of the muscles made less blurry. All in all, it was an impressive exhibit.

Rin bought himself a pair of particularly ruffley lace panties to thank Mako for his help with it.

**Author's Note:**

> Poor Sousuke. XD
> 
> Not sure how regularly I'll be updating, but hopefully I'll have more than a little intro chapter soon! ^w^


End file.
